Latching means for window meeting rails



Oct. 27, 1953 H. A. KAUFMANN 2,656,574

LATCHING MEANS FOR WINDOW MEETING RAILS Filed Nov. 6, 1950 HARRY AKAUFMANN Zhwentor Patented Oct. 27, 1953 LATCHIN G MEANS FOR WINDOWMEETING RAILS Harry A. Kaufmann, Detroit, Mich, assignor to The KaufmannCorporation, Detroit, Mich, a corporation of Michigan ApplicationNovember 6, 1950, Serial No. 194,340

This invention relates in general to a sealing device for the meetingrails of a double hung storm or auxiliary window and particularly to atype thereof for preventing separation of the said meeting rails in asaid storm window having metal sash.

Metal sash for storm windows have been found particularly desirablebecause of their strength, light weight, pleasant appearance and mini--mum obstruction to light. The use of rolled or extruded, metalstructural forms provides a high 1y satisfactory sash accomplishingthese purposes. Examples of this type of sash construction may be foundin my Patents Nos. 2,292,273

storm windows.

jectionable in appearance.

rails tightly together.

the storm or auxiliary sashes.

4 Claims. (Cl. ZIP-55) construction of windows, screens and similararticles upon reading the following specification and referring to theaccompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is an oblique view of my improved sealing device for meetingrails mounted in its normal position of use.

Figure 2 is a horizontal, sectional view of a window equipped with myimproved sealing device taken immediately above the meeting rails.

Figure 3 is a top plan View of said sealing device.

In the following description the terms upwardly and downwardly whenused, will have The rails t. and

The

It will be and 2,359,756. However, because of the resultreference to thesealing d vice nd/or Windows ing small cross-section of the rails of thesash, when dispos d in t e r normal po tion of use. said rails often areexcessively flexible, espe- The terms wardly and outwardly 01 theircially where large windows ar involved, derivatives will have referenceto the inside and Accordingly, a strong wind, for example, will outsideof the windows with respect to the buildtend to separate the meetingrails of a double i w t which said Windows are used. hung storm windowhaving metal sash, thereby Referring to es 1 and 2, the numeral Icreating i leakages d Sometimes objectj indicates the upper rail of aconventional, main able rattling. Attempts to overcome this problowerwindow sash and the numeral 2 indicates lem have been made by providingmeeting rail the lower rail of a conventional, a n pp l t or 1 k of onetype t 2 window sash. The upper rail I and the lower ever, in general,present latches are large, com. rail 2 are designed to Seat together, asflWn in plicated dumsy structures, unsuitable for use Figure 1, andcollectively to constitute the meetwith the small metal rails usuallyutilised for mg rails 3 0f e permanent or main wil dew s mt requiregreater 4. The said main sashes, hence the meeting mgunting space t isprovided among rails rails 3, are held against inward and outward ofmetal sash, and their size makes them movement by conventional means.such as guide Even the more suitstrips and the Stops able latches are tadapted to use in instanw The auxiliary or storm window 5 consists oftions where the space is small between the main an upper Sash havingalOWfir Tail 6 and a lower window sashes and the storm window sashes. n,Sash having an upper Tail Acgordingly it is a principal object of my 0D1 are designed to lie side by side, when the storm ention to provide aealing device for the meet \VindDW 5 is Closed, and collectivelyconstitute ing rails of a double hung storm window havthe meeting Tails8 0f the Storm W d ing metal sash, which will hold the meeting meetingrails 8 of the storm window 5 are nor-- mally parallel with, and spacedapart, in su A further object of my invention is to provide 40 Stantiauythe Same horizontal p ane from the a sealing device for a meeting n asafore meeting rails 3 of the main window but, inso said, adapted to usein installations having a far as this invention is concerned, theseparts small spacing between the permanent sashes and may Vary Vertlcauyhorizontally With spect to each other freely within the limits per Afurther object of my invention is to p r 0V1 d e mitted by the usualrequirements of storm wina sealing device for meeting rails, asaforesaid. dow constructwn' sashes of the Storm having simple Structureand operation dow are held agamst inward movement by the blind stops l8and against outward movement A fu'rther w of my is to plovlfje by anyconventional means, not shown. It will a 3 demo? for {neetmg asaforesafld be understood that any suitable installation arwhich 1S.readily adgustable for compensat ng rangement for the windows iscontemplated irregularitlesun the construction of either the myinvention The storm Window 5 provided Permanent WlHdOW the auxiliaryWIIIdOW- with glass panels 9, and the permanent win Other objects andpurposes of my invention will dow 4 is provided with glass panels I0.

be seen by those acquainted with the design and understood, however,that although glass panels a are shown, other panels, such as insect orsun screening, may be used.

The sealing device H (Figures 1 and 3) is comprised of a flat,substantially rectangular body 2!; having a pair of co-planar, upwardlyextending pressure flanges it? and 52a which are integral with theoutward edge of the body 28, spaced. from each other and perpendicularto the plane of said body. A pair of parallel, down wardly extendinggripping flanges i3 and i311, which are each integral with therespective side edges of the body Eli, are disposed adjacent to theinward edge of the body 29 and spaced from the outward edge thereof.Notches 2i and 25a in said side edges of said body between the forwardedge and said gripping flanges, permit the easy formation of saidgripping flanges from a single metal plate.

A slot i l (Figure 3 which is provided in the body 2i! and extendssubstantially diagonally across said body, is comprised of a positioningportion 22 and a locking portion 23. The posi tioning portion ispreferably disposed at an angle of between 45 and 99 to the plane of thepressure flanges, whereas the locking portion 23 is disposed at an angleof between about and about 30 to said plane. lhe distance between theoutward end of the positioning portion 22 and the outward end of thelocking portion 23 measured along a line perpendicular to said plane ispreferably substantially equal to the minimum spacing normally foundbetween the storm window meeting rails 8 and the main window mee ingrails 3.

The sealing device 5 i is slidably mounted to the downward face of thelower rail 2 of the permanent window t by conventional means, such as ascrew i5, which passes through the slot 56, a washer it between thescrewhead and the body it. The ripping flanges i3 and Ito extenddownwardly when the sealing device H is mounted. The pressure flanges i2and i252 extend upwardly from the plate 2i! and at least a part of eachthereof is positioned in substantially the same horizontal plane as atleast a part of the storm meeting rail 1, sufficient registry beingprovided that upon horizontal outward movement of the pressure flanges52 and EM they will firmly engage the storm meeting rail The verticalextent of the pressure flanges 52 and 12a, conveniently aboutfive-eiehts inch in a typical construction, is sufficient to permit allof the vertical variation of the storm window meeting rails with respectto the main meeting rail 2 which is ordinarily permitted anyway by theusual requirement designing storm windows that the meeting rails thereofbe substantially in a horizontal line with the main window meetingrails.

Having mounted a sealing device H, as stated above, sealing of the rails5 and l of the storm window 5 may be accomplished by first urging thedevice 5 l outwardly until'the pressure flanges i2 and 52a thereof bearagainst the adjacent side of the upper rail l of the lower storm sash.When such contact is made, the shank of the screw 15 will lie within thelocking portion 23 of the slot Hi. Accordingly, movement of the deviceit substantially sidewardly in the leftward direction, as appearing inFigures 2 and 3, will eiiect a wedging action between the rail 1 and thescrew l5 by that part of device H lying between the plane of the flanges52 and !2a and the outward wall of the locking portion 23 of the slotl4.

Since the meeting rails 3 of the main window t are relatively inflexibleby comparison with the meeting rails 8 of the storm window 5, thiswedging action will cause the rail I to bow outwardly and snugly engagethe rail 6. Friction will normally prevent dislocation of the sealingdevice I i when thus wedged between the screw I5 and the rail 7.However, where opening of the storm window 5 is not contemplated for along period of time, or where sill cleanout means are provided as shownin my Patent No. 2,435,008, dislocation of the device H may bepositively prevented by tightening the screw 15.

Preferably, the device H is mounted at the center of the window, inwhich case only one is needed to effect a tight seal between the meetingrails 6 and l of the storm window 5, and one of said devices is entirelysufficient for the usual domestic size of window. Further, although morethan one said sealing device may be used, if desired, a single, centeredsealing device has been found preferable from the standpoint ofproviding a more effective seal.

When the sealing device H is fully retracted from the rails 8, itextends beyond the outward face of the rails 3 only by a distance equalto the thickness of the metal in the pressure flanges l2 and l2a,thereby constituting an obstruction to the movement of the sashes ineither the permanent window or storm window which will be negligible forany ordinary spacing between the storm windowand the permanent window.Further, unlike any of the conventional mechanical linkages devised forthe same purposes as my invention, the outward pressure of the sealingdevice i i against the meeting rail 3, being manually produced, can beaccurately controlled. Accordingly, adjustment and compensation forirregularities in spacing between the window rails is a simple matter.

Modifications of my invention may be made without departing from theprinciple of my invention. Each of these modifications is to beconsidered as included in the hereinafter appended claims unless thelanguage of these claims expressly states otherwise.

I claim:

1. In a sealing device for the meeting rails of a double hung stormwindow mounted adjacent to a double hung permanent window and upon theframe thereof, the meeting rails of said permanent window being parallelwith and spaced horizontally from the meeting rails of the storm window,the combination comprising: a rectangu lar, fiat body having inward andoutward edges, the width of said body between said edges beingsubstantially greater than the horizontal spacing between the respectivemeeting rails of said storm and permanent windows and a slot formed insaid body diagonally arranged with respect to said edges, said slothaving a locking portion at the inward portion thereof comprising overhalf of its length and disposed at a low angle to said outward edge, andhaving a positioning portion at the outward portion of said slotcomprising less than half of its length and disposed at an angle to saidoutward edge greater than said low angle; means extending through saidslot releasably and slidably securing said body to lower surface of thatmeeting rail of said permanent window adjacent so said storm window,said means being spaced from the adjacent meeting rail of the stormwindow a distance which is intermediate the distances which the ends ofthe slot are spaced from said storm window meeting rail whereby saidbody may be urged outwardly into engagement with and retracted from saidad- Jacent storm window meeting rail by movement of said body withrespect to said means, a pair of co-planar, spaced pressure flangessecured to and extending upwardly from the outward edge of said body forengagement with the adjacent meeting rail of said storm window when saidbody is urged outwardly thereagainst; and gripping means integral withsaid body, whereby said device may be manually engaged for urging sameagainst the adjacent meeting rail of said storm window.

2. In a window assembly for a building structure having a substantiallyrigid double hung main window sash construction having a centrallydisposed member held against inward and outward movement with respect tosaid building structure and a pair of relatively flexible double hungstorm sashes each equipped with a meeting rail and spaced outwardly fromsaid main window sash construction and held at their side edges againstinward and outward movement with respect to said main window sashconstruction, means for holding the meeting rails for said storm sashesagainst inward and outward movement with respect to each othercomprising: a member including head and shank portions extendingdownwardly from the lower surface of the bottom rail of the upper One ofsaid double hung sash; a rectangular flat body having inward and outwardedges, of width between said edges sufiicient to extend from the innersurface of the inner one of said double hung storm sash to a pointbeyond the position occupied by said member and a slot formed in saidbody and diagonally arranged with respect to said edges, said slothaving said member extending therethrough and being of a uniform widthsumcient to permit a sliding clearance with respect to the shank of saidmember but permitting the head of said member to overlap both edges ofsaid slot, and said slot further having an elongated locking portionincluding the inward end thereof and comprising over half the length ofsaid slot and disposed at a low angle to said outward edge, and saidslot also having a positioning portion including the outward end of saidslot and comprising less than one half the length of said slot anddisposed at an angle to said outward edge greater than said low angle; apressure flange integral with the outward edge of said body andextending perpendicularly therefrom for engagement with the innermostsurface of the storm window meeting rails and grip-ping flanges integralwith said body and extending downwardly substantially perpendicular withrespect thereto.

3. In a window assembly for a building structure having a substantiallyrigid double hung main window sash construction having a centrallydisposed member held against inward and outward movement with respect tosaid building structure and a pair of relatively flexible double hungstorm sashes each equipped with a meeting rail and spaced outwardly fromsaid main window sash construction and held at their side edges againstinward and outward movement with respect to said main window sashconstruction, means for holding the meeting rails for said storm sashesagainst inward and outward movement with respect to each othercomprising: a

member including head and shank portions extending downwardly from thelower surface of the bottom rail of the upper one of said double hungsash; a rectangular flat body having inward and outward edges, of widthbetween said edges suflicient to extend from the inner surface of theupper rail of the lower one of said double hung storm sash to a pointbeyond the position occupied by said member and a slot formed in saidbody and diagonally arranged with respect to said edges, said slothaving said member extending therethrough and being of a uniform widthsufficient to permit a sliding clearance with respect to the shank ofsaid member but permitting the head of said member to overlap both edgesof said slot, and said slot further having an elongated locking portionincluding the inward end thereof and comprising over half the length ofsaid slot and disposed at a low angle to said outward edge, and saidslot also having a positioning portion including the outward end of saidslot and comprising less than one half the length of said slot anddisposed at an angle to said outward edge greater than said low angle; apressure flange integral with the outward edge of said body andextending perpendicularly therefrom for engagement with said innersurface and gripping flanges integral with said body and extendingdownwardly substantially perpendicular with respect thereto.

4. In a device for holding the horizontally adjacent meeting rails of adouble hung storm window against horizontal movement towards and awayfrom each other, said window being mounted in a frame with a doublehung, substantially rigid main window having an upper sash meeting railhorizontally aligned with and spaced inwardly from said storm meetingrails, the combination comprising: a member having a head and shank,said shank extending downwardly from and being secured to the lowersurface of said upper sash meeting rail; a flat rectangular body havinginward and outward edges spaced from each other a distance substantiallyexceeding the distance between said member and the inner surface of saidinner storm sash; means forming a slot in said body diagonally arrangedwith respect to said edges, said shank being slidably disposed withinsaid slot which has a uniform width substantially less than the minimumwidth of said head, said slot having a locking portion remote from saidoutward edge and disposed at a small angle thereto and having apositioning portion adjacent to said outward edge and disposed at arelatively larger angle thereto, said locking portion comprising thelarger part of said slot; a pressure flange integral with said outwardedge of said body and extending perpendicularly therefrom for engagementwith said inner surface of said storm sash; and gripping means integralwith said body and extending downwardly therefrom.

HARRY A. KAUFMANN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number

